Happy thanksgiving!

I was watching CNN just now and it was describing how millions of Americans would not be able to even have a descent meal on their tables for thanksgiving dinner this year. I have too much to be thankful for. For a decent dinner just now, I'm thankful.

This morning, we went to Basillique du Sacre-Coeur, which is an old cathedral that sits on top of a hill. The hill was in a small neighbourhood called Montmartre. Despite the narrow lanes and cobbled roads, I enjoyed walking around this small town. The small shops were also rather interesting and artistically decorated.

Napolean's coffin. He should be inside..

After that, we visited Napolean's (remember that guy?) tomb and the army museum. The visit to Napolean's tomb was insightful because I managed to learn more about French history. It was also easy to tell that Napolean was a great king because so much effort was put into sculpting his tomb.

Escargots!

A closer view

I ate 4 snails during lunch. Since we were in France, mom and dad found it a neccesity to try the Escargots here, so they ordered 12 snails. I thought snails should have been part of salads since they were, well.. somewhat related. The dish looked live 12 graves dug for 12 poor snails, covered in olive oil, garlic and whatever secret garnishing the undertakers dumped in. I think they don't taste too bad - just a little squishy. The trick to successfully eating it is to not stare too intently at the black curled structure dangling on your fork. Oh yes, more importantly, try not to think too much while chewing on it.

Musee de Orsay

A sculpture of Mozart holding a violin

We visited the Musee d' Orsay, a museum which used to be a large train station. The museum presents the whole range of fine arts between 1848 and 1914. There were works from famous artists such as Monet, Van Gogh and Matisse. I found it hard to appreciate the masterpieces, but I think I can blame dad's genes for that. Dad was practically frowning at the pieces and only some works won his favour. His physics-filled brain was probably already overloaded with art. Mom, on the other hand, had the patience to pause in front of every painting and slowly take in all the goodness.

After that, we went to Galleries lafeytte, which is a very big departmental store, split into 3 huge buildings. We did some shopping (Jean's going to like what I got her) and bought food from the supermarket to cook back at our hotel. I like dinners like this because they're more homely, and they also taste good.

Good night to me, and good morning to those in Singapore!